What’s next for J.D. Martinez?

Outfielder J.D. Martinez is at a crossroads in his career path. And he appears to be rising to the occasion. After being outrighted to AAA and taken off the Astros 40-man roster, Martinez has been raking in the Venezuelan Winter League.

J.D. has put together a .315/.390/.576 slash line in 23 games for Leones del Caracas. Martinez has blasted six homers and driven in 18 runs in only 23 games and was recently selected for the All-Star team.

It is nice to see J.D. back in a groove. Although many Astros fans have already given up on him, there are still a number of us who would like to see the 26-year old achieve long-lasting success with the Astros. Martinez showed an uncanny ability to drive in runs when he was called up from AA Corpus Christi back in 2011.

But J.D. had a disappointing sophomore season and has battled multiple injuries over the last year-and-a-half. As it stands now, the Miami native could be lost in Thursday’s Rule 5 Draft. Given his track record and experience, Martinez should be an attractive commodity for a team that is looking for a fourth outfielder. There has even been speculation that Martinez could be selected by the Rockies and dealt back to Houston as the PTBNL in the Dexter Fowler trade (hat-tip to The Crawfish Boxes).

The Winter Meetings are now underway and the Astros are still looking to upgrade their outfield. Could J.D. Martinez be part of the equation? Stay tuned.

J.D. Martinez (Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports)